Everywhere
by klutzysunshine
Summary: Melinda engages in a pre-Bahrain habit, one that annoys everyone except for Phil.


As it had for the past twelve hours, _Fleetwood Mac_ echoed around the Playground, courtesy of one Melinda May. This annoyed everyone except for Phil, who couldn't stop smiling at the woman he loves. She finished listening to one song, skipped to another, and then turned around to find him staring at her. "Why are you looking at me like that, Phil?"

He shrugged, continued grinning, and tried to play innocent as he walked over to her. "No reason. Can't I just admire the love of my life?"

She rolled her eyes at his sappiness even though it warmed her entire body, a feeling Melinda hadn't experienced in a very long time. "You need to stop."

"Stop what?"

"Being a sap." She adored how sappy he was and wouldn't want him to change that habit any time soon. Melinda was lucky to have him and vice versa.

Phil ran a hand through her hair before kissing her forehead. "Not happening, Melinda. I like seeing you this way." He missed this Melinda, although that something he'd never tell her. He loved both pre and post-Bahrain her and she'd probably take it the wrong way if he said anything which is why he chose to keep quiet. He was sick of listening to the same songs over and over again too but honestly didn't mind seeing this glimpse of the woman the team slowly started to bring out again.

Melinda knew exactly what he meant and she was happy this side of herself was returning too, bit by bit. She was broken but maybe she could find herself again, if that was even possible (it was - for once, she refused to give up hope in an impossible situation). "I love you," she murmured.

He sat down on a chair and pulled Melinda onto his lap. "I love you too." He wanted to marry her but wanted to do it the right way (and Skye would probably kill him if he proposed without a ring, not that Melinda would care, but that wasn't the point) and at the right moment.

She sighed contentedly and closed her eyes to enjoy the song a lot more. Melinda let herself feel the emotions of what was happening, not even caring that she was still in Phil's lap. "We should get up before the kids catch up."

Phil winced. "Pretty sure they do already know because we're not exactly subtle - at least according to Hunter." And Skye, once again, since she kept giving him a thumbs up every time he and Melinda were even in the same vicinity. Their daughter (and she had become theirs in a way neither of them imagined she would) had tried to push them together as a way to avoid her own problems (which hadn't worked out very well initially but that was a story for another day, and they were all reluctantly working on it in therapy - all ten of them, to be exact, and it tended to be a highly volatile situation most of the time).

Melinda sighed and then leaped off his lap, causing him to groan. "You want to stay with me? I'll make it worth your while."

This time, it was his turn to sigh because he had work to do. "We can make up for lost time tonight when there's nothing to do."

"That's going to come back to bite us in the ass but I don't care." Right now, she was too happy to worry about the latest potential crisis that would surely strike any minute now. Melinda loved that she had managed to restart a past, pre-Bahrain habit and she was sure Phil did too by the loving, happy smile on his face.

He kissed her one last time before leaving and found Skye dancing a bit at his desk (Melinda turning on all the speakers ensured that everyone else had to hear it too, thus the annoyance). "What are you doing?"

She looked up from his computer, where she clearly had been working on something. "Hey, Dad! Just needed to look something up but I got what I need and now I'm going to find the others."

Phil just shook his head and sat down on the desk. "You don't have to stop whatever it is you were looking up just because I came back, Skye. It's okay to stay. How's your day going."

Skye stopped typing for a few seconds to answer him (she could multi-task but didn't feel like it). "Great. Why do you ask?"

"No reason."

"What's Mom up to, besides the obvious?" She had initially been annoyed by the music playing on repeat all day too before realizing that she actually liked the band and most of their songs. Oops.

He shrugged. "Nothing, really." The look on his face must have given away because Skye tilted her head expectantly as she waited for an answer. "This is something she used to do before."

Skye's eyes lit up in recognition. "Before Bahrain?" she guessed. At Phil's nod, she squealed and beamed. "This is awesome! And at least we're not caught in the crossfire like with the pranks. Except for the poor pranks. And annoying everyone else," she corrected as her fingers returned to the keyboard and started tapping on it.

After conversing for about twenty minutes, Skye left after finishing up what she needed to do and Phil wandered back to the room he and Melinda shared even though he was now behind on paperwork (but honestly? That was nothing new). The base's speaker system had been turned off and music blared out of her laptop. "You don't have to do anything to make yourself look beautiful because you already are."

Melinda spun around to face him as _Edge of Seventeen _ended and _Everywhere _started up again. "You don't have to compliment me so I'll fuck you. That was going to happen anyway."

Although he was used to her bluntness, the comment still caught him off guard at first before he started chuckling. "That's not why I'm complimenting you. So, what was your life like at the edge of seventeen, Melinda May?"

"You know what it was like, Phil." She stood up from the chair and wrapped her arms around him.

"You up for a dance?"

At her nod they gently began swaying to the music, careful to avoid the bed (and unwanted injuries). "I know you don't want to hear this, Phil, and I don't want to ruin the moment, but I'm never going to be that girl you fell in love with again. Too much has happened. Bahrain … Bahrain destroyed who I was."

Phil wiped the tears sliding down her face off her cheeks and shook his head. "I know that and it doesn't matter to me. You survived and you're still here. We have a family now and we're in love and this job sucks ninety percent of the time but that's fine. Melinda, Bahrain doesn't have to define you for the rest of your life. Remember what I tell the others when this gets to them? Listen to me. I am wise."

Melinda rolled her eyes and smacked his shoulder. "Phil! Be serious for a minute."

"I was being serious!" he defended just as _Leather and Lace _began to play.

"Fuck, I love listening to this." And that's when the idea hit her out of the blue. "We should get married. There's an ordained minister around the base somewhere, isn't it?"

"First of all, what? Second of all, you ruined the elaborate proposal I hadn't planned yet. And third of all, fuck yes. I want to be your husband." Phil picked her up, carried her to the wall, and started kissing her.

Melinda moaned. "As much as I want to fuck you right here, I was being serious. Let's get the kids, find the minister, and get married now."

He pulled away. "I'm in. We'll tell Skye first so we don't have to speak to anyone else."

"Good idea. Now let me down." As soon as she was on her feet again, Melinda and Phil went to go find their daughter and break the news to her.

Skye's loud squeal shocked them both so much Phil started rubbing his ears. "I think you shattered my eardrums. God, why did I stand so close?"

"Stop complaining, Phil."

Within fifteen minutes, all ten members of the team had gathered around them and Mack had managed to find the on-base minister for them (no one was really sure why he was around in the first place but none of them thought that really mattered anyway). And five minutes after that, Phil Coulson and Melinda May were married after decades of avoiding their feelings for each other.

The music had unintentionally done something no one expected it to.


End file.
